The High Cost of the Right to the City

March 2010

Notes from a meeting of Abahlali baseMjondolo in preparation for the World Urban Forum (WUF): “The Right to the City”.

It is our usual practice when we send delegates to other people's meetings that we get together as a movement and discuss our collective view so that our delegates can take a mandate that is based on our 'home-made' politics. In this case there will be chances for our comrades to connect with other movements from around the world as well, so it is all the more important to be clear on our own home-cooked politics of Abahlalism – our 'living politics'.

Abahlali baseMjondolo Press Statement
Tuesday, 16 March 2010

Abahlali baseMjondolo Press Conference on Friday 19 March 2010

Venue: St Paul's Church, 161 Pine Street, Durban 031-305 466
Date: Friday 19 March 2010
Time: 10h00 a.m.

There is a deep corruption at the top of our society and a deep anger at the bottom of our society. As the dirty deeds of the tenderpreneurs are being dragged into the light by the media and as the police become ever more violent the poor are taking to the streets across the country in ever greater numbers. We continue to believe that the only way for this country to heal itself is for the poor to organise the poor so that we can increase our power and decrease that of the politicians, the rich and their civil society. Since the attack on our movement in September last year we have expanded into eight new areas despite ongoing repression and harassment. Now is the time to unite all our branches, the old areas and the new, to defy the ongoing campaign of repression, and to take our demands to the streets of our city.

Click here to see some pictures.

Siyanda, 13/03/2010

Shack Fire in Siyanda

Around 2:30 am, the male occupant of shack 171 woke up with heavy smoke and heat. He left his shack and saw that the smoke was coming from the wall of shack 170. The three women, and young child, that lived in shack 171 were away that night.

He called the neighbours, and around 5 of them came to put out the fire, which they manage to extinguish in a very short time. The male occupant of shack 170 went back to his shack to bathe to go to work. In the meantime one of the neighbours called the owners of the shack 171 to tell about the fire and that the wall of the shack was damaged.

Abahlali baseMjondolo Press Statement
11 March 2010

Mike Sutcliffe Bans another Abahlali baseMjondolo March

The notorious Mike Sutcliffe has banned another Abahlali baseMjondolo march. We have, as always, scrupulously followed the laws that govern protest and we have informed the City in good time that we intend to march on Jacob Zuma on 22 March 2010. Yesterday the march convenor, Troy Morrow from the Hillary AbM branch, was verbally informed that permission to march has been denied. The excuse that has been given this time is that the City does not have enough police officers to be able to ensure security at our march.

Abahlali baseMjondolo Press Statement
3 March 2010

The Third Force is Gathering its Strength

The goal that our attackers wanted to achieve when they ambushed us on the night of 26 September 2009 has not been achieved. A surprise attack was launched against our movement, the spontaneous resistance to the attack was broken by the police, our office was destroyed, hundreds of our members and supporters were chased from Kennedy Road, thirteen of our comrades were jailed and illegally detained and we have been banned from openly organising in the settlement where our movement was founded. But our movement was never just in Kennedy Road. Before the attack there were fifteen settlements affiliated to our movement in Durban and more than 50 branches across Durban, Pinetown, Tongaat, Howick, Pietermaritzburg and Cape Town. The goal of the attack was to destroy our movement to punish us for our victory against the Slums Act, to deny us the victory that we had won to have the Kennedy Road settlement upgraded where it is and to neutralise us before 2010. But our movement still exists. In fact it continues to grow. Since the attack we have launched four new branches and we will launch another four new branches soon.

Inkulumo ka-Mengameli waBahlali baseMjondolo Movement SA.wokuvulwa kwehhovisi labahlali e-Siyanda, Isonto, 28 February 2010.

Mphathi wohlelo, abaholi babahlali baseMjondolo, bonke abaholi abakhona ngokwezikhundla zabo nabobonke Abahlali baseMjondolo.

Ngithanda ukuzwakalisa ukukhathazeka okukhulu ngokuthi ngingakwazi ukuba phakathi kwenu namhlanje , futhi ngifisa ukudlulisa ukuxolisa okukhulu kini ngokuzithoba. Nakuba ngifisa nazi ukuthi nginani ngokomphefumulo.Kubeyintokozo enkulu kimi ukubona abaholi benu beshabasheka, behla benyuka ukwakha lelihhovisi ngokusizwa ngamalunga omphakathi. Lelihhovisi lakhiwe ngezithukuthuku zabasebenzi abampofu, lelihhovisi lakhiwe ngothando nobubele ngakho-ke angingabazi ukuthi lizowusiza lomphakathi wabahlali.

http://abmsolidaritygroup.blogspot.com/

Abahlali baseMjondolo Solidarity group in association with SOAS War on Want Society Presents:

The Right to Know: The Fight for Open Democracy in South Africa

- A Short Film Showing and Discussion -

7pm - Wednesday 3rd March

Room 4418 (4th Floor, SOAS Main Building)

Since the mid-2000s, a number of social movements in South Africa have organised and acted to improve the lives of those living in substandard housing and working, if at all, precariously in the informal economy and fighting against privatization, evictions, water-collection and electricity turn-offs.

When liberators become oppressors

Revd Roger Scholtz of the Methodist Church has castigated the authorities for
turning themselves into oppressors of the people they once liberated.

He was speaking at a prayer service organised by Diakonia Council of Churches outside the gates of the Durban Magistrates’ Court on 19 February. The service was attended by church leaders who included Bishop Barry Wood OMI, Chairperson of Diakonia Council of Churches, staff and friends and family members of the
Kennedy 12.

In a powerful message Revd Scholtz said it is ironic that the service is being held just a week after the 20th anniversary of the release of Nelson Mandela from prison.

http://abmsolidaritygroup.blogspot.com/2010/02/open-letter-to-church-leaders-in-united.html

An Open Letter to Church Leaders in the United Kingdom
21 February 2010

Dear church leaders in the United Kingdom,

I would like to draw your attention to a situation of great injustice that is festering in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal South Africa. In response to their campaigns for economic and social rights for shack dwellers, members of Abahlali baseMjondolo (Abahlali), a community movement based in the shack settlement of Kennedy Road, have been subjected to violent attacks, forced evictions and unjust court proceedings since September last year. The most worrying fact about these travesties is that they appear to have been conducted with the knowledge and tacit support of local authorities and structures of the governing party. This repression of a democratic organisation, brings back memories of the oppressive days of apartheid in the country.